Groundswell partnered with Barrett Design and Development to create a mural project celebrating the history of one of Brooklyn’s most unique- the "Broken Angel" building at 4 Downing Street in Clinton Hill. The site was originally a farm in the 1800's, then it was turned into a tenement building, an office for trolley cars, and back to an apartment building until it was abandoned for some time and finally sold in 1979 to a man named Arthur Wood for $2,000. Wood and his wife Cynthia turned the building into the "Broken Angel" building by adding ad hoc architectural additions until it eventually towered nine stories above sidewalk level. The building was later condemned for violating building codes.
 
This passage of time and history is represented in the mural panels by the red path of a trolley car and the stops it makes along the way – a farm, a tenement building, a trolley car, the broken angel symbol, a block party (a nod to Dave Chapelle's "Block Party" filmed on location in 2005), to the bright future of what the building will become in the capable hands of Barrett Design and Development, which has taken over ownership of the building.

“Dream, Perchance, Rebuild!” was created as part of Recovery Diaspora, a collaborative citywide public art installation created by Swoon, together with youth from Red Hook, Coney Island, Staten Island, Sunset Park and the Rockaways, among the neighborhoods most affected by the storm. As a response to the devastation caused by Superstorm Sandy, teen artists drew from stories of healing and recovery to create a visual narrative that captures the concerns, hopes, and overall spirit of these communities.
 
A group of young people from Sunset Park designed “Dream, Perchance, Rebuild!,” to be created as part of the “Come Together: Surviving Sandy” exhibition. This 60,000+ square foot arts exhibition was presented at Brooklyn’s Industry City, a hub of creative manufacturing and innovation.
 
Through an intensive mural design process, Groundswell teen artists researched the impact of Sandy on Sunset Park and created a mural design celebrating the resilience of the neighborhood. They then painted the mural live during weekends, when the exhibition was open to the public, further engaging the broader public in the process.

Groundswell was commissioned by Montefiore Medical Center to engage young women residents of Horizons Juvenile Center in the creation of two new murals for the inside of two Montefiore OB/GYN clinics. This collaboration proved a powerful opportunity to engage women from various economic and cultural backgrounds and allow them to provide meaningful support to one another. Visitors to the Montefiore clinics will be positively impacted by the presence of art, while the young women from Horizons were offered a public platform to share their perspectives and talents while positively impacting the broader community. “The Peace of Womenkind” is set in a surrealist and undulating landscape with light yellows, deep raw siennas, and greens colors, also with metallic gold, bronze, and copper paint, inspired by Gustav Klimt. The main figure is a mother who melds with the landscape as she bathes a child in a lake fed by a distant waterfall. On the left is a group of three women and two children, who share a single body covered by a flat metallic pattern. 

Groundswell was commissioned by Montefiore Medical Center to engage young women residents of Horizons Juvenile Center in the creation of two new murals for the inside of two Montefiore OB/GYN clinics. This collaboration proved a powerful opportunity to engage women from various economic and cultural backgrounds and allow them to provide meaningful support to one another. Visitors to the Montefiore clinics will be positively impacted by the presence of art, while the young women from Horizons were offered a public platform to share their perspectives and talents while positively impacting the broader community. “Mother of All” depicts a surrealist image of a reclining mother and baby. The mother’s braids and blanket transform into an undulating quilt-like landscape with trees, cities and rivers. In the sky is a pattern of pearls, and diamonds. The color palette includes rich greens, browns, and blues in the sky, as well as metallic gold in the mother’s braids and hints of copper in the landscape. 

Dunkin’ Donuts commissioned Groundswell to create a new mural that both depicts the changing nature of Williamsburg and taps into the neighborhood’s vibrant community and artistic identity. The mural illustrates a fanciful scene of animals seated around tree stumps while sipping coffee and staring out at the concrete jungle through the windows.  The work plays with notions of indoor versus outdoor, causing onlookers to pause and reflect while also bringing a bit of nature to an urban environment.  “On the Outside Looking In” also draws attention to the various changes and transitions occurring in the outside environment and surrounding neighborhoods.

In partnership with New York City Councilmember Vincent Gentile and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, Groundswell created a new mural commemorating the sacrifices and commitment of our veterans for a wall located at the Fort Hamilton Athletic Field. During the research and design of this mural, Lead Artist Esteban del Valle met with many veterans from the community involved with Fort Hamilton Army Base and other local veteran organizations, who generously shared their experiences and stories. The mural is inspired by their heroism and sacrifice. It depicts all branches of the United States Armed Services. Bay Ridge community members, students, and veterans were invited to contribute their time and talent to the creation of the mural during a joyous community painting event. The mural was unveiled during a high-profile dedication ceremony on Veteran’s Day in November 2013. At this event, the Fort Hamilton High School Symphonic Band performed a musical tribute to the armed services. 

Through a partnership with IS 291 in Brooklyn, Groundswell organized the creation of a mural for the ground floor of the school based on the theme of “Journey to Success.” In collaboration with the school’s afterschool program, students worked together with Groundswell artists to create original symbols of the words “success” and “journey.” The final mural design illustrates educational opportunities and obstacles. A pigeon serves as the mural’s protagonist, moving through life’s challenges toward success.

"Recovery Diaspora," located on the famed Bowery Mural wall, is the capstone mural created as part of the Recovery Diaspora series, a collaborative citywide public art installation developed by Swoon, together with youth from neighborhoods deeply impacted by Superstorm Sandy. 

In summer 2013, teen artists worked in collaboration with renowned street artist Swoon and  Groundswell muralists Yana Dimitrova, Angel Garcia, Jazmine Hayes, and Misha Tyutunik to create four permanent murals for Coney Island, Far Rockaway, Red Hook, and Staten Island. Youth artists drew from stories of healing and recovery to create a visual narrative that captures the concerns, hopes, and overall spirit of these communities. 

"Recovery Diaspora" illustrates the vision and optimism of these young people. The mural's central figure is Thalassa, a goddess from Greek mythology known as the mother of all sea creatures. An elementary school, which acted as a shelter in the Rockaways, shines in the form of a lighthouse. An octopus fails to drown Red Hook underwater thanks to the efforts of hundreds of volunteers from across the nation. A mermaid comforts Coney Island while a heart contains healing for the lost children of Staten Island. 

Scheduled to coincide with the anniversary of the storm, "Recovery Diaspora" is a testament to both resilience and vulnerability, and by engaging the public in its design, it serves to highlight the importance of continued relief efforts by and for Sandy's victims. 

For two weeks in November of 2013, an enormous white tent was erected at the corner of Varick and Canal Streets in downtown Manhattan as part of a pioneering civic forum under the name “Talking Transition” to open up a discussion on the future of New York City as it elects its new mayor, Bill de Blasio. As part of Talking Transition, Groundswell led a two-week collaborative mural design process. This process enabled Groundswell to engage a broad segment of New Yorkers in envisioning how art and culture can help create a better city for all New Yorkers. The process kicked off with a youth-led artmaking workshop. Through hands-on artmaking, families and young people were invited to contribute their ideas and visions for how they would like to see art used as a tool for positive tranformation in their communities. 

Using the drawings, poems, and ideas generated during this workshop as a springboard, Groundswell youth artists created two mural design sketches. The mural design and painting process was transparent and open to the public, offering another opportunity for visitors to the tent to contribute their input. In the murals, a more equitable New York City is literally painted into existence through the collective work of artists, activists, youth, nonprofit organizations, and city agencies. When finished, the mural panels were installed permanently at the Brooklyn Community Foundation's main office.

Groundswell was commissioned by Whole Foods Market to create a series of murals for the exterior of its inaugural Brooklyn store, located at Third and 3rd in Gowanus. In designing the murals, a team of all-star Groundswell youth first undertook a rigorous research process.  They toured the store's location, once designated a federal Superfund site, and investigated community efforts to clean up and restore the Gowanus Canal. They met with the store's design team, to better understand the many cutting-edge sustainable elements planned, including a rooftop garden and state-of-the-art CO2 refrigeration system. Finally, they interviewed Whole Foods corporate staff, to learn more about how the company will support local grassroots efforts to bring healthy eating to children of all income levels through key partnerships. The completed murals are inspired by a theme of healthy and nourishing foods, designed with a goal of connecting food and community.  The four colorful completed panels show contrasting rural and urban landscapes, and include beautiful and vibrant images of healthy and locally sourced foods.